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Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region

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2023 Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region

16 Colleges
$23,224 Avg Salary
$17,798 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, design and applied arts was ranked #36 in the country. In fact 36,301 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 16 schools in the Southeast Region to see which associate degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region

Check out the design associate degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 10 Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools

#1

Nossi College of Art

Madison, TN

Our analysis found Nossi College of Art to be the best school for design and applied arts students who want to pursue a associate degree in the Southeast Region . Located in the city of Madison, Nossi College of Art is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Nossi College of Art

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Guilford Technical Community College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region list. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Jamestown, Guilford Technical Community College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

While working on their Associate Degree, design majors at Guilford Technical Community College accumulate an average of around $19,208 in student debt.

Read More…

The excellent associate degree programs at Seminole State College of Florida helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best design and applied arts schools in the Southeast Region . Located in the small city of Sanford, Seminole State is a public college with a large student population.

After completing their Associate Degree, design graduates from Seminole State carry an average student debtload of $21,887.

Read More…

#4

Full Sail University

Winter Park, FL

The excellent associate degree programs at Full Sail University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best design and applied arts schools in the Southeast Region . Full Sail University is a very large private for-profit school located in the suburb of Winter Park.

After completing their Associate Degree, design graduates from Full Sail University carry an average student debtload of $32,119.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend AI Miami International University of Art and Design. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region list. International Fine Arts College is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the city of Miami.

While working on their Associate Degree, design majors at International Fine Arts College accumulate an average of around $23,480 in student debt. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $241, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at AI Miami International University of Art and Design

Northern Virginia Community College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best associate degree design and applied arts programs. Located in the suburb of Annandale, Northern Virginia Community College is a public college with a very large student population.

After completing their Associate Degree, design graduates from Northern Virginia Community College carry an average student debtload of $24,041.

Read More…

#7

Gwinnett Technical College

Lawrenceville, GA

Gwinnett Technical College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for design and applied arts students to get a associate degree. It came in at #7 on the list. GTC is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Lawrenceville.

While working on their Associate Degree, design majors at GTC accumulate an average of around $18,811 in student debt.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Gwinnett Technical College Report

Chattanooga State Community College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region list. Chattanooga State Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Chattanooga.

The average amount in student loans that design majors at Chattanooga State Community College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $17,677.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Chattanooga State Community College

Central Piedmont Community College ranked #9 on this year’s Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region list. Central Piedmont Community College is a large public school located in the city of Charlotte.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Central Piedmont Community College Report

Wake Technical Community College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Design & Applied Arts Associate Degree Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. Located in the large suburb of Raleigh, Wake Technical Community College is a public college with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that design majors at Wake Technical Community College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $16,864.

Full Design & Applied Arts at Wake Technical Community College Report

Best Design & Applied Arts Colleges by State

Explore the best design and applied arts schools for a specific state in the Southeast region.

State Degrees Awarded
Georgia 1,446
Virginia 889
North Carolina 944
Florida 1,128
Tennessee 296
Kentucky 84
South Carolina 316
Louisiana 84
Arkansas 228
Alabama 246
Mississippi 81
West Virginia 114

Design & Applied Arts is one of 10 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 37,413
Music 25,910
Drama & Theater Arts 17,341
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 16,778
General Visual & Performing Arts 6,355

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 16 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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